Would he use/like a Swiss Army knife or a Leatherman tool? To personalize it, consider having initials engraved…
http://bestpocketknifetoday.com/the-top-10-best-multitools-ever/
Men in my family enjoy them and the tools can be very useful!
BR is Banana Republic. Although I like Baskin Robbins, too.
Now all I can think of is which flavor I’d choose…
Speaking of food…if the young man is a foodie and lives in a city a gift card for a food tour might be good. I can recommend Foods of New York as well as Chicago Food Planet.
I’m giving cookbooks for a reason so they can learn how to cook, haha. Not to subtle is it.
How about a couples cooking lesson at William Sonoma?
Cooks Warehouse also has classes. DS and wife gave US a gift certificate for a class. No message in that, eh? :-??
My kid knows how to cook, she won several cooking contests at one of her law firm that she worked at. All you need is a desire or like to cook. Practice makes perfect. I just don’t want my daughter to be the only want doing the cooking all the time. She has a busy schedule and it would be nice if a future boy friend can cook decently well. Not just baked beans on toast or per made salads from Costco.
But isn’t a couples cooking lesson the same as a gift certificate to a restaurant? It’s for them and not for him kind of thing.
“Them” is a big part of what a newly engaged couple is about. It can be more fun than , say, a belt.
I’ve been giving a lot of people fancy sea salt from Oregon. I love that it’s local. Also, most people don’t see salt (no pun intended) as carrying any kind of hidden message. http://jacobsensalt.com/collections/all
Dmd77- the salt sounds like a great gift.
For a male you don’t know well-or even one you do. “Fancy beef jerky”. My S loves a brand of jerky he orders online. He likes the Krave brand. He also likes to grill and loves their spice rub.
For the first holiday my D was seriously daring her BF I wanted to give him something but not overwhelm him. He had a new puppy so we put together a puppy package. Dog frisbee, kong and a box of puppy bisquits.
As long as the male is not vegetarian like Mark Zuckerberg.
As a young man, I second this. Gift cards, while also highly appreciated may seem too impersonal to the giver.
While I’m always on the hunt for new clothes, performance gear, socks, etc., I am very particular. Some brands just fit me better than others. While I appreciate the thoughtfulness, if I’m not going to wear/use it, I’d like to have the chance to change it for something that I will.
For busy young working people in select cities, the gift of good food the easy way:
Yep, when in doubt, I get something from Costco and make sure to let the recipient know it’s from there (pretty much everyone I know is a Costco member), and that I will NOT be offended if they exchange it for something they prefer.
sweats for hanging around the house, pajamas for when it’s really, really cold and need them.
work out clothes, my sons always appreciate that.
Car washing supplies
…or GC for washing and detailing of car.
@VaBluebird, the sweats suggestions is a good one. Every couple of years, my son asks for some for Christmas. He’s actually a bit into clothes and somewhat particular with his wardrobe, but to him, nothing’s more relaxing on a cold winter night than to slip into his sweats.